In my Designer Diaries series, I try to provide little snapshots of my job as a designer for Humble Design Detroit, a nonprofit that partners with local shelters and agencies to furnish and decorate homes (using donated goods) for families and individuals after they receive housing. My design partner and I are one of three teams at our location. Together, we furnish three homes a week. I share more about our process in Designer Diaries 001 and Designer Diaries 002.
While so many times it is the moms striving to keep their families together, this one highlights three dads.
I.
His teenage son said he just wanted to have a place of their own, to get out of the shelter. But the place of their own had blankets on the floor, food in the cupboard, and nothing else— until that Friday, when they handed us the keys.
We translated the things they barely asked for into everything we thought they would need. A loveseat, tv stand, and tv. A bed, a desk, bar stools, art, and so much more.
“Ooooeeee!” the father crooned when he walked through the door. “Oh wow, this is amazing!”
He turned to us with arms outstretched.
“There has to be something I can do for you.”
The son wandered back to the bedroom, which we assumed was his dad’s when he gave us a virtual tour. He was confused by the decor. A green plaid bedspread covered the bed, a comfy chair in the corner, and the dresser decorated with books and a vase. He certainly wasn’t going to complain, but it wasn’t a bedroom for a teenage boy.
“This is much better,” he said in his actual room when he saw the giant football banner over his bed. He walked to the bookshelf to check out the books next to the desk.
“He’s got a 3.5 grade point average,” his dad boasted as we stood in the living room with his case worker before we left.
“He’s going to keep doing what he’s doing, and I’m going to do my part and we’ll be good.”
The text we received that night:
Thank you guys again for everything that you’ve done for me and my son. WORDS cannot describe the feelings me and my son have. We appreciate you guys so much, you guys have made our lives so much better. Thank you for the motivation.
II.
A father of 5 tells us his story during our initial FaceTime call. Taking on the responsibility of his kids resulted in the loss of his job and house. He spent the night in his truck with his kids asking God what to do, and God told him to go to the shelter.
The shelter helped them find a house after a few months and provided mattresses or cots for each of them until we could get there.
He sat with each kid on his lap so we could ask them about their favorite colors and characters. We strained to hear them over the call behind their quiet voices. The boys liked cars and the girls liked unicorns, and we scoured our warehouse to make their wishes a reality.
The reality was nothing about this week was easy— from choosing the furniture to the items needed to decorate the house. The two-story home had a challenging layout, but the biggest obstacle was the stairs. Walk up two steps to a landing, turn to walk up the rest of them, and turn to go down the hallway—a Deco Day’s worst nightmare.
The trouble started when we realized we were missing the side rails to two of our beds. It continued when a headboard didn’t make the first turn up the stairs. We sent one of the movers back for a replacement headboard and the missing side rails. While he was gone we realized the box spring also didn’t fit up the stairs, and our bunk bed was missing some hardware. I called the mover after he was already on his way back so he could retrieve the parts and grab a split box spring.
Not every week is this challenging, but the mix of staff out of the office for a conference and my design partner and me coming back from a week’s vacation was the recipe for things to go wrong.
The only room that came together perfectly and smoothly was the dining room, and it was beautiful. In the end, it all got done, but we shook our heads all the way back to the warehouse. The text we got that evening aided our recovery.
Thank you guys so much… my home is beautiful… and the kids are in love with their rooms.
III.
I was on my own for the week furnishing and decorating a one-bedroom apartment. My design partner and I have a running joke that whenever she is on vacation somehow my Deco ends up on the news.
It happened previously with a transit activist known as Detroit’s “other people mover.” He drove a cab and often offered free rides to those who couldn’t afford it. He spent time with the Detroit City Council to advocate for the city buses to run on time so people who depended on busing for transportation did not lose their jobs. The deputy mayor came to his reveal. 1
But this one-bedroom apartment was for a father of a three-year-old boy. He had already been in the news. After being incarcerated, his story was highlighted with Goodwill’s Flip the Script2 program. The program helps the formerly incarcerated and unemployed to gain skills, education, and financial help. He learned to be a welder, and I was privileged to be a small part of his story by furnishing his apartment when he received housing.
I knew the apartment was a third-floor walk-up, which on a summer day in Detroit was a sweaty endeavor. The camera crew that hooked me up to a mic while I was covered with sweat added an extra layer of nerves. I only hoped they did not play any audio of my treks up and down the stairs.
The day went relatively smoothly. Our movers did have to remove the front door temporarily to move the couch in, but our handyman volunteer successfully opened one of the kitchen cabinets that was painted shut. The reporter arrived right as I was getting ready to vacuum.
I have been a part of days that involved news crews where I very nervously answered questions in segments that never aired. So when she asked if I would answer questions, I said sure with the knowledge it would all come to nothing. But as it would turn out I made the cut.
I met my client in person for the first time on the front lawn with his caseworkers and representatives from the Flip the Script program. We paraded up the stairs together one last time for the reveal. I’ve mentioned before how we print out pictures of our clients and their families to put up around their homes. The photo I’d hung in the hallway leading into his living room stopped him in his tracks. I watched as he pointed to the picture of his son and spoke directly to him “It is all because of you,” he said, “all this is for you.”
He proceeded into the living room to see the loveseat and the one comfy chair that he requested the day before. (I had already picked it out, and it was on the truck.) He was speechless as he surveyed the kitchen and bedroom where I squeezed a full-sized bed and a toddler bed. The reporter captured his emotional gratitude as he exited the bedroom.
Watch the story here.
I sent a picture of the camera crew to my design partner as they interviewed the representative from the Flip the Script program. “You’re not here today so naturally there is a camera crew,” I joked.
“What in the world?! How?” she replied.
“I will tell you later.”
This week I have seen just how easily my world can be shaken. Sharing these stories highlights how easily things can fall apart without a supportive community. Parents, co-workers, and friends, who are ready to step in and offer connections, help, and encouragement. I am proud to work with the organizations, caseworkers, and designers who can step in when that support is absent.
Incredible stories.
well I am a PUDDLE reading this!